A powerful earthquake struck Costa Rica’s Pacific coast on Tuesday, swaying buildings and sending people running into the streets in the nation’s capital of San Jose.
The 6.5-magnitude quake was centreed in the Guanacaste region of the Central American country, only 5 miles (8 kilometres) from the popular tourist town of Nicoya, according to the US Geological Survey. It had a depth of 39.5 kilometres, according to a preliminary report.
At the beach of Matapalo, an hour drive from Nicoya, residents said they heard a roaring sound when the quake struck.
“I’m shaken. But it doesn’t feel close to how it sounds like. The sound was deafening,” said Alberto Canales, a receptionist at the Hotel Riu Guanacaste.
There were no immediate reports of major damage or casualties, however, from the 6.5 quake, which was followed by a magnitude-4.5 aftershock.
The original quake was felt in San Jose, where people ran out of buildings fearing they would collapse.